Method for operating voice chat room dependent on message chat room, and server and terminal for performing the same

ABSTRACT

Disclosed is a method for operating and participating in a voice chat room subordinate to a message chat room is disclosed. The method for operating a voice chat room subordinate to a message chat room includes: managing, by a server, messages transmitted and received through the message chat room in which a first user and a second user participate; receiving, by the server, a request for creation of the voice chat room subordinate to the message chat room from the first user; creating, by the server, the voice chat room in response to the received request for creation of the voice chat room; providing, by the server, information that the voice chat room is being operated to the second user through the message chat room; providing, by the server, information that the voice chat room is being operated to the second user through a message chat room list.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION Field of the Invention

The present disclosure relates to a method for a server to create andoperate a voice chat room which is subordinate to a message chat room,and in which participants of the message chat room are allowed toparticipate, and the server and a terminal for performing the method.

Related Art

With the wide spread of various smart electronic devices such assmartphones, tablet PCs, and wearable devices, and the development ofmobile communication technologies for enabling high-speed communication,various types of chat services have been being provided. In particular,unlike a message chat room in which information is transmitted andreceived in the form of messages between participants, a voice chat roomin which audio information input by a participant can be shared withother participants in real time has been recently caught many people'sattention.

In an existing voice chat room service, multiple voice chat rooms inoperation are provided in the form of a list to a user, and the userchecks information (topic, participants, and date and time of creation)of the voice chat room to request for participation in the voice chatroom.

However, the existing chat room service has a problem in that the voicechat room does not interwork with other message chat rooms or Internetcommunity groups. Thus, participants of a message chat room wish tocreate a voice chat room, it is required to create and operate the voicechat room separately from the message chat room.

In the case of the voice chat room being operated separately from themessage chat room, it is difficult to attract participants of themessage chat room and it is difficult to manage qualifications requiredto participate in the voice chat room.

Therefore, there is a need for a method for creating and operating avoice chat room in a manner that allows participants to easily join thevoice chat room from a pre-existing message chat room and easily managesqualifications required to participate in the voice chat room.

RELATED DOCUMENT Patent Document

-   (Patent Document 1) Korean Patent No. 10-1654261 (registered on Aug.    30, 2016)-   (Patent Document 2) Korean Patent No. 10-1979535 (registered on May    10, 2019)

SUMMARY

An aspect of the present disclosure provides a method for creating avoice chat room subordinate to a message chat room, so that onlyparticipants of the message chat room are allowed to participate in thevoice chat room.

Another aspect of the present disclosure provides a method for operatinga voice chat room, so that participants of an existing message chat roomare encouraged to join a voice chat room subordinate to the message chatroom.

Yet another aspect of the present disclosure provides a method for auser terminal to participate in a voice chat room subordinate to amessage chat room through link information posted in a posting space.

In one aspect, there is provided a method for operating a voice chatroom subordinate to a message chat room, the method including: managing,by a server, messages transmitted and received through the message chatroom in which a first user and a second user participate; receiving, bythe server, a request for creation of the voice chat room subordinate tothe message chat room from the first user, wherein the voice chat roomis a chat room in which participants are able to transmit and receiveaudio information with each other, and in which only participants of themessage chat room are allowed to participate; creating, by the server,the voice chat room in response to the received request for creation ofthe voice chat room; providing, by the server, information that thevoice chat room is being operated to the second user through the messagechat room; providing, by the server, information that the voice chatroom is being operated to the second user through a message chat roomlist; receiving, by the server, a request for participation in the voicechat room from the second user; and managing, by the server, audioinformation transmitted and received through the voice chat room inwhich the first user and the second user participate.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, in the providing of theinformation that the voice chat room is being operated through themessage chat room, the server may provide an interface for participatingin the voice chat room together with the information that the voice chatroom is being operated.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, in the receiving of therequest for participation in the voice chat room, the server may receivethe corresponding request through the message chat room.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may furtherinclude receiving, by the server, the request for participation in thevoice chat room from a third user through voice chat room linkinformation posted in a posting space.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may furtherinclude: receiving, by the server, a request for issuance of voice chatroom link information from one of the participants of the voice chatroom; and providing, by the server, the link information to one of theparticipants of the voice chat room in response to the request forissuance. of the link information.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may furtherinclude, in response to the request for participation in the voice chatroom from the third user, accepting, by the server, participation of thethird user in the voice chat room when the third user is participatingin the message chat room.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may furtherinclude, in response to the request for participation in the voice chatroom from the third user, providing, by the server, information forparticipation in the message chat room to the third user when the thirduser is not participating in the message chat room.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may furtherinclude, in response to receiving a request for participation in themessage chat room from the third user, accepting, by the server,participation of the third user both in the message chat room and thevoice chat room.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may furtherinclude, in response to the request for participation in the voice chatroom from the third user, providing, by the server, the third user withinformation indicating termination of the voice chat room when the voicechat room is terminated at a time of receiving the request forparticipation in the voice chat room from the third user.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may furtherinclude: receiving, by the server, a request for notification ofcreation of any other voice chat room subordinate to the message chatroom from the third user; and in response to the request fornotification, providing, by the server, a notification to the third userwhen any other voice chat room subordinate to the message chat room iscreated.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may furtherinclude: managing, by the server, a participant with an authority torequest the creation of the voice chat room from among the participantsof the message chat room differently from any other participant, whereinthe first user corresponds to the participant who has the authority torequest the creation of the voice chat room; and providing, by theserver, an interface through which the participant with the authorityare able to request the creation of the voice chat room subordinate tothe message chat room, wherein the requesting of the creation of thevoice chat room is made by the first user's interaction with respect tothe interface.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may furtherinclude: managing a participant with an authority to request creation ofthe voice chat room from among the participants in the message chat roomdifferently from any other participant, wherein the first usercorresponds to the participant with the authority to request creation ofthe voice chat room and the second user corresponds to the any otherparticipant; receiving, by the server, information for requesting thecreation of the voice chat room subordinate to the message chat roomfrom the second user; and providing, by the server, information forrequesting the creation of the voice chat room to the first user.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may furtherinclude providing, by the server, at least some of messages providedthrough the message chat room to the participants of the voice chat roomthrough the voice chat room.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may furtherinclude: receiving, by the server, a request for provision of at least apart of audio information provided through the voice chat room from thesecond user who is not participating in the voice chat room; and, inresponse to the request for provision of at least a part of audioinformation, providing, by the server, the at least a part of the audioinformation provided through the voice chat room to the second user.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the at least a part of theaudio information may be audio information provided to the participantsof the voice chat room for a predetermined time based on a point in timewhen the server receives the request for provision of the at least apart of the audio information.

In another aspect, there is provided a method for participating in avoice chat room subordinate to a message chat room, the methodincluding: displaying, by a user terminal, the message chat roomcontaining messages transmitted and received between the participants;displaying, by the user terminal, in a message chat room, informationthat the voice chat room subordinate to the message chat room is beingoperated by a user of a counterpart terminal, and an interface fortransmitting a request for participation in the voice chat room, whereinthe voice chat room is a chat room in which participants are able totransmit and receive audio information with each other, and in whichonly participants of the message chat room are allowed to participate inthe voice chat room; displaying, by the user terminal, informationindicating that the voice chat room subordinate to the message chat roomis being operated, so that the information corresponds to the messagechat room in a message chat room list in which information on multiplemessage chat rooms is displayed; receiving, by the user terminal, aninteraction with respect to the interface, and transmitting, by the userterminal, a request for participation in the voice chat room to aserver; displaying, by the user terminal, a voice chat room includinginformation indicating that the user of the counterpart terminal is aspeaker, wherein the speaker is able to transmit audio information toother participants in the voice chat room; and receiving, by the userterminal, an audio signal transmitted from the counterpart terminalthrough the server, and outputting, by the user terminal, thetransmitted audio signal, wherein the user of the counterpart terminaland the user of the user terminal are participants in the message chatroom.

In yet another aspect, there is provided a method for participating in avoice chat room subordinate to a message chat room, the methodincluding: displaying, by a user terminal, voice chat room linkinformation posted in a posting space, wherein the voice chat room is achat room in which participants are able to transmit and receive audioinformation with each other; receiving, by the user terminal, aninteraction with respect to the link information and transmitting arequest for participation in the voice chat room to a server; inresponse to the user of the user terminal being a participant of amessage chat room to which the voice chat room is subordinate,displaying, by the user terminal, a voice chat room includinginformation that a user of a counterpart terminal is a speaker, whereinthe speaker is able to transmit audio information to other participantsin the voice chat room; and in response to the user of the user terminalbeing not a participant of the message chat room, displaying, by theuser terminal, a page for participation in the message chat room.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may furtherinclude: transmitting, by the user terminal, a request for participationin the message chat room to the server through the page; and in responseto the server accepting the corresponding request, simultaneouslydisplaying, by the user terminal, the message chat room and audioinformation provided through the voice chat room.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, in the simultaneouslydisplaying, the user terminal may display a screen showing the audioinformation so as to overlap a screen showing the message chat room.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may furtherinclude, in response to the voice chat room being terminated,displaying, by the user terminal, information that the voice chat roomis terminated.

In the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a method forcreating and operating a voice chat room subordinate to a message chatroom, so that only participants of the message chat room are allowed toparticipate in the voice chat room.

In the present disclosure, it is possible to easily encourageparticipants of an existing message chat room to participate in a voicechat room subordinate to the message chat room.

In the present disclosure, it is possible for a user terminal to easilyparticipate in a voice chat room subordinate to a message chat roomthrough link information posted in a posting space.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a server, a userterminal, and a network environment connected thereto according to anembodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a method for operating a voice chatroom subordinate to a message chat room according to an embodiment ofthe present disclosure.

FIGS. 3 to 8 are diagrams illustrating exemplary screens displayed on auser terminal as a method for operating a voice chat room subordinate toa message chat room according to the present disclosure is performed.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining a method for operating a voice chatroom subordinate to a message chat room according to another embodimentof the present disclosure.

10 is a flowchart illustrating a method for operating a voice chat roomsubordinate to a message chat room according to yet another embodimentof the present disclosure.

FIGS. 11 to 13 are diagrams illustrating exemplary screens displayed ona user terminal as a method for operating a voice chat room subordinateto a message chat room according to the present disclosure is performed.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating a method for creating a voice chatroom subordinate to a message chat room according to an embodiment ofthe present disclosure.

FIGS. 15 and 16 are flowcharts illustrating a method of participating ina voice chat room subordinate to a message chat room according to anembodiment of the present disclosure.

DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Description will now be given in detail according to exemplaryembodiments disclosed herein, with reference to the accompanyingdrawings. For the sake of brief description with reference to thedrawings, the same or equivalent components may be provided with thesame or similar reference numbers, and description thereof will not berepeated. In addition, in the following description of the embodiments,a detailed description of known functions and configurationsincorporated herein will be omitted when it may impede the understandingof the embodiments.

While terms including ordinal numbers, such as “first” and “second,” andthe like, may be used to describe various components, such componentsare not limited by the above terms. The above terms are used only todistinguish one component from another.

The singular forms are intended to include the plural forms as well,unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

In this specification, each step described can be performed regardlessof a listed order, except for a case where it must be performed in thelisted order due to a special causal relationship.

In this application, the term “comprise” or “have” is intended todesignate characteristic, numbers, steps, operations, elements,components, or combinations thereof, but it is not intended to precludethe presence or addition of one or more other features, numbers, steps,operations, elements, components, or combinations.

Hereinafter, the present disclosure will be described with reference tothe accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a network environmentaccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure. A networkenvironment according to an embodiment of the present disclosure shownin FIG. 1 may include a server 10 and a user terminal. The user terminalmay include a first terminal 20, a second terminal 30 and a thirdterminal 40.

a network is not limited in communication method, and may include notonly a communication method of utilizing a communication network (e.g.,mobile communication network, wired Internet, wireless Internet, andbroadcasting network) that the network can include, but alsoshort-distance wireless communication.

The server 10 may be implemented as a computer device or a plurality ofcomputer devices for providing commands, codes, files, contents,services, and the like. The server 10 may be a server 10 capable oftransmitting and receiving information through communication with a userterminal via a network.

The server 10 may include a processor 11, a memory 12 and acommunication part 13.

The processor 11 may control overall operations of the memory 12 and thecommunication part 13 to provide a chat service through a message chatroom and a voice chat room to a user terminal and execute an applicationassociated with the chat service.

The memory 12 may serve as a storage medium and may store a plurality ofapplication programs running in the server 10, and data and instructionsfor operating the server 10. In one embodiment, the memory 12 may storeapplications associated with a chat service.

This memory 12 may be provided in the form of various hardware storagedevices such as ROM, RAM, flash drive, hard drive, and the like, or maybe provided in the form of web storage.

The communication part 13 may communicate with the user terminal via thenetwork by wire or wirelessly.

The server 10 of the present disclosure may provide a chat service to auser terminal through a message chat room. The chat service provided bythe server 10 may be provided through a message chat room and a voicechat room.

Specifically, the server 10 provides a message chat room in whichparticipants are able to send and receive messages with each other.Here, a message includes a text, an image, a video, a voice, a file,contact information, location information, and voting information of theparticipants. The message chat room may include a private chat room inwhich only the creator of the chat room and participants invited by thecreator are allowed to participate, and a public chat room in whichparticipation is possible through link information publicly posted in aposting space even without creation and invitation of the chat room. Anexample of a public chat room service is open chatting (registeredtrademark of Kakao Corporation) provided by Kakao Corporation throughKakaoTalk (registered trademark of Kakao Corporation). Such a messagechat room may be a chat room of participants in a specific relationshipor a chat room for a specific topic. In the present disclosure, thescope of the present disclosure is not limited by the type and nature ofa message chat room.

In some cases, participants in a message chat room may be classified byentitlement according to a predetermined criterion. For example, theserver 10 may classify participants of a message chat room into a host,a moderator, and a general participant. The type (grade) for classifyingparticipants may be variously changed and determined.

In addition, the server 10 of the present disclosure may provide anaudio information sharing service for a user terminal through a voicechat room. The voice chat room refers to a chat room in whichparticipants are able to transmit and receive audio information witheach other. Here, the audio information may be information on voice,sound, or music input through a participant's terminal. Voiceinformation input by a participant through a voice chat room may beshared with other participants in real time. In this way of sharingaudio information, audio information is shared with other participantsin real time as soon as a participant speaks, unlike the above-describedcase where a voice file recorded in a message chat room is shared and aparticipant having received the shared voice file listens to the file byreproducing the same. In a voice chat room, information to betransmitted and received is not limited only to audio information.Participants may be able to transmit and receive texts, images, videos,files, contact information, location information, and voting informationof the participants other than audio information through a voice chatroom. Examples of voice chat room services include mm (registeredtrademark of Kakao Corporation) provided by Kakao Corporation andClubhouse provided by Alpha Exploration Co.

Qualifications of participants in the voice chat room may be classifiedinto a speaker and a listener. The speaker may transmit audioinformation input by himself/herself in the voice chat room to otherparticipants in the voice chat room. Unlike the speaker, the listenerdoes not have the authority to transmit audio information input by thelistener to other participants, but may be able to only receive andlisten to the audio information of the speaker. The qualifications ofthe participants may change according to the voice chat room's moderatoror the server's operating policy. That is, for example, a participantwho was a listener may switch to a speaker at his or her request.

Hereinafter, in the present specification, a message chat room and avoice chat room will be described as different chat rooms distinct fromeach other.

The server of the present disclosure may create and operate a voice chatroom subordinate to a message chat room. In the voice chat roomsubordinate to the message chat room, only participants of the messagechat room are allowed to participate. Thus, if a user not participatingin a message chat room requests to participate in a voice chat roomsubordinate to the message chat room, the user must first participate inthe message chat room.

The server of the present disclosure provides a plurality of methods forparticipating in a voice chat room created in dependence on a messagechat room. First, the server may provide a method for participating in avoice chat room through an interface provided through a message chatroom. In addition, the server may provide a method for participating ina voice chat room through link information posted in a posting space.

The user terminal may include a first terminal 20, a second terminal 30and a third terminal 40. The user terminal may be a fixed terminalimplemented as a computer device, or may be a mobile terminal. In oneexample, the user terminal may include a smart phone, a mobile phone, atablet PC, a computer, a laptop computer, and a personal digitalassistant (PDA). In one example, the user terminal may communicate withthe server 10 or other user terminals via a network by wire orwirelessly.

The user terminal may be used by a user. The user may be a user of theuser terminal, but may also mean an account registered as a user in achat service provided by the server 10 (including a message chat roomservice and a voice chat room service). Thus, the meaning that theserver 10 transmits specific information to a user may imply that theinformation is transmitted to a user terminal through the user's accountregistered in the server 10.

The user terminal may include a communication part, an input part, anoutput part, a memory, and a processor.

The communication part may communicate with the server 10 or otherterminals by wire or wirelessly.

The input part may receive various types of information through a user'smanipulation and input. The input part may be a touch screen module, akeyboard, a mouse, a button, a camera, a stylus, a microphone, and thelike.

The user terminal may receive a user's interaction through the inputpart. The interaction means that a user manipulates the input part toinput information reflecting the user's selection or intention to theuser terminal. For example, the interaction may be a touch on a touchscreen, a click of a mouse, typing of a keyboard, sound input of amicrophone, image capture by a camera, motion recognition by a motionsensor, and the like.

The output part may output various types of information. The output partmay be a display device, a speaker, a vibration generating device, atactile sensation generating device, and the like. In some cases, theoutput part may be a device (e.g., Bluetooth earphone) that is connectedto the user terminal through wired or wireless communication (e.g.,short-range wireless communication such as Bluetooth) to receive andoutput signals.

The memory serves as a storage medium and may store a plurality ofapplication programs running in the user terminal, data and instructionsfor operating the user terminal. Such memory may be provided in the formof various hardware storage devices such as ROM, RAM, flash drive, harddrive, and the like, or may be provided in the form of web storage.

In one example, applications associated with a message chat room serviceand a voice chat room service may be stored in the memory.

The processor may control overall operations of the communication part,the input part, the output part, and the memory to execute applicationsassociated with a message chat room service and a voice chat roomservice.

A user of the first terminal 20 may be a participant of a message chatroom and may be a user who creates a voice chat room. The first terminal20 may display an interface associated with a request for creation of avoice chat room. The interface associated with a request for creation ofa voice chat room may be provided in a state in which the user of thefirst user 20 has entered a message chat room. By inputting aninteraction on the interface, the user of the first terminal 20 maytransmit a request for creation of a voice chat room subordinate to themessage chat room to the server.

When the voice chat room subordinate to the message chat room is createdby the server, the user of the first terminal 20 may act as a speaker inthe voice chat room. Specifically, the first terminal 20 may transmitinput audio information to other participants of the voice chat room.

A user of the second terminal 30 is participating in the message chatroom and may request for participation in the voice chat roomsubordinate to the message chat room. Since the user of the secondterminal 30 is already a participant of the message chat room, the useris able to immediately participate in the voice chat room without aseparate process for participating in the message chat room.

The first terminal 20 or the second terminal 30 may receive voice chatroom link information from the server and post the voice chat room linkinformation on a posting space. The third terminal 40 may transmit arequest for participation in the voice chat room to the server throughthe link information. The third terminal 40 may not be a participant ofthe message chat room. In this case, the third terminal 40 must firstparticipate in the message chat room and then participate in the voicechat room.

Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, the user of the firstterminal 20 is referred to as a first user, the user of the secondterminal 30 as a second user, and the user of the third terminal as athird user.

Hereinafter, referring to FIG. 2 , a method in which a server of thepresent disclosure operates a voice chat room subordinate to a messagechat room will be described.

In operation S110, the server 10 manages messages transmitted andreceived through a message chat room. Here, the message chat room may bea chat room in which a first user and a second user participate. Theserver 10 may provide a message, transmitted by the first user or thesecond user to the server 10, to participants of the message chat roomthrough the message chat room.

In operation S120, the server 10 may receive a request for creation of avoice chat room subordinate to the message chat room from the firstuser. Here, the voice chat room being subordinate to the message chatroom means that only participants of the message chat room are allowedto participate in the voice chat room. In this embodiment, since boththe first user and the second user are participants of the message chatroom, the first user and the second user are allowed to participate inthe voice chat room subordinate to the message chat room.

The server 10 may authorize only some of the participants of the messagechat room to request creation of the voice chat room subordinate to themessage chat room. Specifically, the server 10 may authorize onlyparticipants classified as a host or moderator in the message chat roomto request creation of the voice chat room subordinate to the messagechat room. Here, the first user may be the host or moderator of themessage chat room, and may have an authority to request creation of thevoice chat room subordinate to the message chat room.

A first terminal 20 (a terminal of the first user) may display aninterface to request creation of the voice chat room subordinate to themessage chat room. The interface may be provided only after the firstterminal 20 enters the message chat room. In response to receiving aninteraction with the interface from the first user, the first terminal20 generates voice chat room creation request information. This voicechat room creation request information is transmitted to the server 10.

In operation S130, the server 10 creates the voice chat room subordinateto the message chat room in response to the request received inoperation S120. In an initially created voice chat room, the first userwho requested the creation of the voice chat room may be designated as aspeaker. In addition, the initially created voice chat room may becreated in a state in which the first user is the only one participant.

In operation S140, the server 10 provides the second user through themessage chat room with information indicating that the voice chat roomis being operated. Since the second user is participating in the messagechat room, the second user may receive, through the message chat room,the information indicating that the voice chat room is being operated.

The information indicating that the voice chat room is being operated isinformation notifying that the voice chat room subordinate to thecurrent message chat room is being operated. In operation S140, theserver 10 may provide the second user with information indicating thatthe voice chat room is being operated and an interface for participatingin the voice chat room. For example, a join button for participating inthe voice chat room may be provided together with information indicatingthat the voice chat room is being operated through an interface. Inaddition, a feature for touching a message displaying the informationindicating that the voice chat room is being operated through theinterface may be provided.

The information indicating that the voice chat room is being operatedmay be provided to the message chat room in various forms. For example,the information indicating that the voice chat room is being operatedmay be provided in the form of a message in the message chat room.Specifically, the information indicating that the voice chat room isbeing operated may be provided in the form of a message spoken by thefirst user in the message chat room. The displayed position of themessage-type information indicating that the voice chat room is beingoperated may be changed when another subsequent message is providedthrough the message chat room.

Also, for example, the information indicating that the voice chat roomis being operated may be provided in the form of a fixed message in themessage chat room. Here, the fixed message type refers to a type inwhich the corresponding message is displayed at a partly designated areaof the message chat room and the displayed position does not change evenif a subsequent message is displayed.

In some cases, in operation S140, the server 10 may provide the seconduser with information, which indicates that the voice chat room is beingoperated, in a form corresponding to the corresponding message chat roomon a chat room list. The second user may display a chat room list inwhich information on multiple message chat rooms is displayed. Theinformation indicating that the voice chat room is being operated may bedisplayed to correspond to the message chat room to which the voice chatroom is subordinate in the chat room list.

In some cases, in operation S140, the server 10 may provide informationindicating that the voice chat room is being operated to the second userin various forms associated with the message chat room. For example, thesecond terminal 30 (the terminal of the second user) may displayinformation, which indicates that the voice chat room is being operated,in the form of a push notification or a status notification.

The second user may select or control a method in which the informationindicating that the voice chat room is being operated is displayed inthe second terminal 30. For example, the second user may set the secondterminal 30 to receive a message indicating that the voice chat room isbeing operated, but not to provide a push notification and a statusnotification. It is also possible to separately set whether or not toreceive such messages and notifications in each message chat room.

In operation S150, the server 10 receives a request for participation inthe voice chat room from the second user. The second user may transmit arequest for participation in the voice chat room in various ways.Specifically, as described above, a request for participation in thevoice chat room may be generated through an interface provided togetherwith information indicating that the voice chat room is being operated.In addition, a request for participation in the voice chat room may begenerated through link information which will be described later.

After operation S150, the server 10 may accept the second user'sparticipation in the voice chat room. As described above, the seconduser is allowed to participate in the voice chat room because the seconduser is participating in the message chat room to which the voice chatroom is subordinate. In some cases, if there is a limiting factor, suchas limiting the total number of participants in the voice chat room, thesecond user's participation in the voice chat room may be rejected.However, generally, the second user's request for participation in thevoice chat room may be accepted.

In operation S160, the server 10 manages audio information transmittedand received through the voice chat room in which the first user and thesecond user participate. Specifically, the server 10 may transmits theaudio information received from the first user to other voice chat roomparticipants including the second user. In doing this, the first user,as a speaker, may be able to share audio information input byhimself/herself with other voice chat room participants, and the seconduser may be able to receive the audio information of the first user.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 3 to 6 , a specific embodiment of amethod for operating a voice chat room subordinate to a message chatroom by the server 10 described above with reference to FIG. 2 will bedescribed.

FIG. 3 illustrates a screen on which a first terminal 20 requestscreation of a voice chat room subordinate to a message chat room.Referring to FIG. 3 , the first terminal 20 may display a screen of amessage chat room 310. In the message chat room 310, messagestransmitted and received between participants of the message chat roommay be displayed. The messages may be displayed as a result of theserver 10 performing operation S110.

The first terminal 20 may display an additional feature menu window 320when an interaction for viewing additional features of the message chatroom is received from the first user while the message chat room 310 isbeing displayed. The additional feature menu window 320 may be displayedin a part of an area where the message chat room is originallydisplayed. FIG. 3(a) shows an additional feature menu window displayedin an area where a keyboard is displayed in a message chat room as anexample.

The first terminal 20 may display a voice chat room creation button 321as one of the related features on the additional feature menu window320. The first terminal 20 may receive an input of an interaction withrespect to the button 321 from the first user.

Here, the voice chat room creation button 321 may be selectivelydisplayed according to what authority the user has been granted in themessage chat room. That is, in this embodiment, the first user may be aparticipant who corresponds to a host or moderator in the message chatroom, and who has an authority to request the server 10 to create avoice chat room subordinate to the message chat room. Thus, the voicechat room creation button 321 is displayed in the first terminal 20.

On the other hand, the second user may be a participant who does nothave an authority to request creation of a voice chat room. In thiscase, the voice chat room creation button 321 may not be displayed inthe second terminal 30. This case will be described in more detail withreference to FIG. 7 below.

When the first terminal 20 receives an interaction with respect to thebutton 321 from the first user, a screen 330 requesting additionalinformation for creating a voice chat room may be displayed.Specifically, as shown in (b) of FIG. 3 , a screen to set a name of avoice chat room may be displayed. The first terminal 20 may receive aname of the voice chat room through an interface 331 of the screen. If aseparate name of the voice chat room is not received, the server 10 maygenerate the name of the voice chat room as the same as the name of themessage chat room.

Also, as shown in (b) of FIG. 3 , a screen 332 to ask whetherpre-listening is allowed may be displayed. Details related to apre-listening function of a voice chat room will be described in moredetail with reference to FIG. 8 below.

As shown in (b) of FIG. 3 , when the first terminal 20 receives aninteraction with respect to the voice chat room creation button from thefirst user, the first terminal 20 may transmit voice chat room creationrequest information to the server 10. In response to receiving the voicechat room creation request information, the server 10 performs operationS120.

FIG. 4 shows a voice chat room screen displayed by the first terminal 20and the second terminal 30. Here, a voice chat room may be created as aresult of the server 10 performing operation S130.

When the first terminal 20 and the second terminal 30 enter the voicechat room, a screen of the voice chat room may be displayed as shown inFIG. 4 . Speaker information 410 and listener information 420 may beseparately included on the screen of the voice chat room. Referring toFIG. 4 , it can be seen that a first user is designated as a speaker anda second user is designated as a listener.

FIG. 5 illustrates a screen on which a first terminal 20 or a secondterminal 30 displays, in a message chat room, information indicatingthat a voice chat room is being operated. The information indicatingthat a voice chat room is being operated is displayed as a result of theserver performing operation S140.

A plurality of spoken messages transmitted by participants of themessage chat room may be displayed in the message chat room. A spokenmessage may be displayed together with a participant's profile, ID,name, and the like, so that a speaker who has spoken the message can bedisplayed. In FIG. 5 , the first user's spoken message 530 is displayedtogether with the first user's profile 531, and the second user's spokenmessage 540 is displayed together with the second user's profile 541.

The information indicating that a voice chat room is being operated maybe displayed in various forms in the message chat room. First,information 510 indicating that the voice chat room is being operatedmay be displayed in the form of a message in the message chat room. Themessage 510 indicating that the voice chat room is being operated isdisplayed in the same form as other messages in the message chat room.Thus, if another message is displayed through the message chat roomafter the displaying of the message 510 indicating that the voice chatroom is being operated, the displayed position of the message 510 maychange. If a number of different messages are displayed through the chatroom, the message 510 indicating that the voice chat room is beingoperated may be pushed out of a screen displaying the most recentmessages.

The message 510 indicating that the voice chat room is being operatedmay be displayed in a form spoken by a user who created the voice chatroom. Referring to FIG. 5 , it can be seen that the message 510indicating that the voice chat room is displayed together with theprofile 531 of the first user, so that the message 510 can be displayedin the form of a message spoken by the first user.

Also, the information 520 indicating that the voice chat room is beingoperated may be displayed in the form of a fixed message in the messagechat room. A message being displayed in the form of a fixed message in amessage chat room means that the corresponding message is displayed in apartly designated area of the message chat room, and the displayedposition thereof does not change even if another subsequent message isdisplayed. A fixed message form is often used to display an announcementin a message chat room, and the information indicating that the voicechat room is being operated is displayed in a similar form.

Together with the information indicating that the voice chat room isbeing operated, the first terminal 20 or the second terminal 30 mayprovide an interface for participating in the voice chat room. Referringto FIG. 5 , it can be seen that a join button 521 for participating inthe voice chat room is provided along with the information 520indicating that the voice chat room is being operated. Also, the message510 indicating that the voice chat room is being operated may beprovided in the form as an interface through which an interaction suchas touch or click can be applied.

Here, when an interaction of the first user or the second user isreceived with respect to the interface for participating in the voicechat room being operated, the first terminal 20 or the second terminal30 may transmit a request for participation in the voice chat room tothe server 10. In response to receiving the request for participation inthe voice chat room, the server 10 performs operation S150.

FIG. 6 illustrates a screen on which a first terminal 20 or a secondterminal 30 displays information 621 indicating that the voice chat roomis being operated on a message chat room list 610. The informationindicating that the voice chat room is being operated may be displayedadditionally as a result of the server 10 performing operation S140.

A first user or a second user may be participating in multiple messagechat rooms. The first terminal 20 or the second terminal 30 may displaythe multiple message chat rooms in the form of a list 610. The firstuser or the second user may select one of the message chat rooms listedon the message chat room list 610 and enter the selected message chatroom.

On the message chat room list 610, the information 621 indicating thatthe voice chat room is being operated may be displayed at a position 620corresponding to a message chat room to which the voice chat room issubordinate. In doing so, it is possible to allow the first user or thesecond user to easily determine which message chat room, among themultiple message chat rooms in which the user has participated, iscurrently operating a voice chat room.

Together with the information indicating that the voice chat room isbeing operated, the first terminal 20 or the second terminal 30 mayprovide an interface for participating in the voice chat room. Forexample, by inputting an interaction to an area 621 in which theinformation indicating that the voice chat room is being operated isdisplayed, the first user or the second user may request forparticipation in the voice chat room. In response to the interaction,the first terminal 20 or the second terminal 30 may transmit to theserver 10 a request for participation in the voice chat room of thefirst user or the second user. In response to receiving the request forparticipation in the voice chat room, the server 10 performs operationS150.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 7 to 9 , additional features of amethod for operating a voice chat room subordinate to a message chatroom by the server 10 described above with reference to FIG. 2 will bedescribed.

FIG. 7 illustrates a screen showing that a second terminal 30 requestsanother user to create a voice chat room subordinate to a message chatroom. Referring to FIG. 7 , the second terminal may display a screen 710of a message chat room. In the message chat room, messages 530 and 540transmitted and received between participants of the message chat roommay be displayed. This may be a result corresponding to theabove-described operation S110.

When an interaction associated with viewing related features of themessage chat room is received from the second user while the messagechat room 710 is being displayed, the second terminal 30 may display arelated feature menu window 720. The related feature menu window 720 maybe displayed in a part of area where the message chat room 710 isoriginally displayed. FIG. 7 shows an example in which a related featuremenu window is displayed in an area where a keyboard is displayed in amessage chat room.

In the second terminal 30, a button 721 for requesting the host tocreate a voice chat room may be displayed on the related feature menuwindow 720 as one of the related features. Here, the voice chat roomcreation button 721 may be selectively displayed according to whatauthority a user has been granted in the message chat room. That is, inthe present embodiment, the second user may be a participant who is notthe host or moderator of the message chat room and thus has no authorityto directly request creation of a voice chat room subordinate to themessage chat room from the server 10. In this case, using the functionof the button 721, the second user may request creation of a voice chatroom from another user (e.g., the first user) who has an authority tocreate a voice chat room subordinate to the message chat room.

The second terminal 30 may receive an input of an interaction withrespect to the button 721 from the second user. The server 10 mayreceive information resulting from the interaction, and may transmit, tothe first terminal 20, information indicating that the second user hasrequested creation of a voice chat room subordinate to the message chatroom.

Using this function, even a participant who does not have an authorityto request creation of a voice chat room subordinate to a message chatroom can indirectly attempt to request creation of a voice chat room.

FIG. 8 illustrates a screen showing that the second terminal 30 performsa function of pre-listening to audio information provided through avoice chat room subordinate to a message chat room.

Referring to FIG. 8 , when a voice chat room subordinate to a messagechat room is being operated, a participant of the message chat room maybe able to receive audio information provided through the voice chatroom within a predetermined range without participating in the voicechat room.

Here, the audio information to be provided may be set within apredetermined time range. For example, a participant may be able topre-listen to audio information for one minute even withoutparticipating in a voice chat room. Whether to activate the function(pre-listening function) to pre-listen to audio information in advanceeven without participating in a voice chat room may be determined by acreator or moderator of the voice chat room. In (b) of FIG. 3 , theinterface 332 for selecting whether or not to activate the pre-listeningfunction is shown.

Referring to FIG. 8 , the second terminal 30 may provide an interface830 for starting a function of pre-listening to an currently operatingvoice chat room. The interface 830 may be displayed together withinformation 820 indicating that the voice chat room is now beingoperated. The second user may start the pre-listening function byinputting an interaction with respect to the interface 830. In thiscase, the second terminal 30 may display in a Picture-In-Picture (PIP)method a screen 840 notifying the pre-listening function in activation,so that the screen 840 is overlapped on the screen 810 displaying themessage chat room.

Using the pre-listening function, a user may be able to simply andeasily check some of the audio information to be provided through avoice chat room, without feeling burden of participating in the voicechat room.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining a function of creating a voice chatroom according to a pre-received condition of a server 10.

Operation S910 may be included in operation S120 shown in FIG. 2 . Inoperation S910, the server 10 may receive information on a condition forcreating a voice chat room from a first user. Here, the condition forcreating a voice chat room refers to a prerequisite for creating a voicechat room subordinate to a message chat room.

For example, the condition for creating a voice chat room may be that avoice chat room is created at 8:00 PM tomorrow. Also, the condition forcreating a voice chat room may be that the voice chat room is createdwhen the number of participants of the message chat room reaches 100.

In operation S920, the server 10 may provide the information on voicechat room creation request and condition received operation S910 toparticipants of the message chat room through the message chat room. Theinformation on the voice chat room creation request and condition may bedisplayed in the form of a message in the message chat room or may bedisplayed in the form of a fixed message.

Operation S930 may be included in operation S130 shown in FIG. 2 . Inoperation S930, the server 10 may create a voice chat room when thecondition received in operation S910 is satisfied. To this end, theserver 10 should continuously monitor whether the condition received inoperation S910 is satisfied. Also, when the condition received inoperation S910 is satisfied, the server 10 may automatically create avoice chat room even without a separate request from the first user.\ Insome cases, the server may provide the fact that the voice chat room hasbeen created to participants of the message chat room through themessage chat room to which the voice chat room is subordinate.

Although not shown in the drawings, through the voice chat roomsubordinate to the message chat room, the server 10 may provide at leastsome of the messages provided through the message chat room toparticipants of the voice chat room.

For example, it is assumed that a message including a specific image isprovided through the message chat room. Then, when a participant of thevoice chat room wishes to mention the specific image, the participant ofthe voice chat room may be able to call the message including the imageprovided in the message chat room, without need to upload the specificimage to the voice chat room again. In response to a request for thecall, the server 10 may provide the corresponding message to theparticipants of the voice chat room through the voice chat room.

Using this function, a participant of a voice chat room may be able toaccess a message provided through a message chat room to which the voicechat room is subordinate, and to easily provide the message to otherparticipants of the voice chat room.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 10 , an additional embodiment of amethod for operating a voice chat room subordinate to a message chat bya server 10 of the present disclosure will be described.

In operation S1010, the server 10 receives a request for issuance ofvoice chat room link information from any one of participants of a voicechat room. Through the link information, a user terminal may transmit arequest for participation in the voice chat room to the server 10.

There may be separate link information for a message chat room to whichthe voice chat room is subordinate. In this case, voice chat room linkinformation and message chat room link information may be separate anddifferent from each other. Thus, if a user terminal accesses the serverthrough the voice chat room link information, this access maycorresponds to requesting participation in the voice chat room.Participation in the message chat room is a prerequisite to participatein the voice chat room, and this will be described again below. On theother hand, if a user terminal accesses the server through the messagechat room link information, this access may correspond to requestingparticipation in the message chat room rather than the voice chat room.Thus, if such a participation request is accepted, a user may beprovided through the message chat room with information indicating thatthe voice chat room is being operated, but the user may not participatein the voice chat room.

Here, the link information may refer to information on a link connectedto the voice chat room. For example, the link information may beprovided in the form of a Custom URL Scheme, an http URL, a QR code, ahighlighted text, or an icon. The Custom URL Scheme may be in the formof link information for executing an application. The http URL may be inthe form of link information linking to a predetermined web page. The QRcode is a two-dimensional barcode representing information in a blackand white plaid pattern, and may include, for example, informationlinking to a predetermined web page. The highlighted text may be in theform of a text or in the form in which all or part of a text istransformed, and may include link information linking to a predeterminedweb page. The icon refers to a pictogram represented as a symbolicpicture so that an object, a facility, a shape, a concept, and the likecan be easily recognized, and the icon may include information linkingto a predetermined web page.

In operation S1020, the server 10 provides link information to any oneof the participants of the voice chat room in response to the issuancerequest received in operation S1010. The link information may beprovided in the form of text information to a participant's terminal ormay be stored directly in a clipboard memory of the participant'sterminal.

Thereafter, the voice chat room link information may be posted in anarbitrary posting space prior to operation S1030. For example, a voicechat room participant provided with the link information in operationS1020 may post the link information in an arbitrary posting space. Inaddition, in some cases, the server 10 may post the voice chat room linkinformation in the arbitrary posting space in various ways. Here, thearbitrary posting space may be another message chat room, an Internetcommunity post, and a web page introducing message chat rooms or voicechat rooms.

In operation S1030, the server 10 receives a request for participationin the voice chat room from a third user through the link informationposted in the posting space.

In operation S1040, the server 10 determines whether the third user isparticipating in the message chat room.

When it is determined in operation S1040 that the third user isparticipating in the message chat room, operation S1050 is performed. Inoperation S1050, the server 10 accepts the third user's participation inthe voice chat room. Accordingly, the server 10 may be able to manageaudio information transmitted and received through the voice chat roomin which the third user participates. In addition, the server 10 mayprovide a screen of a voice chat room, which is similar to that shown inFIG. 4 , to the third terminal 40 (the third user's terminal). In thiscase, information indicating that the third user is designated as aspeaker or a listener may be included on the screen of the voice chatroom.

When it is determined in operation S1040 that the third user is notparticipating in the message chat room, operation S1060 is performed. Inoperation S1060, the server 10 provides information for participation inthe message chat room to the third user. Here, the information forparticipation in the message chat room may include a topic of themessage chat room, participation conditions, a creation time,information on participants who have already participated, and the like.Also, the information for participation in the message chat room mayinclude an interface through which the third user is able to select orcreate a profile to be used in the message chat room. Specifically, theinformation for participation in the message chat room may include aninterface through which the third user determines whether to participatein the message chat room with a previously used profile or a newlycreated profile.

In operation S1070, the server 10 receives a request for participationin the message chat room from the third user. Here, the request forparticipation in the message chat room may be information transmitted tothe server 10 through the interface provided to the third user inoperation S1060.

In operation S1080, the server 10 accepts the third user's request toparticipation both in the message chat room and the voice chat room,unless there is a special reason for rejection. Therefore, afteroperation S1080, the third user may become a participant of the voicechat room as well as a participant of the message chat room.

In operation S1090, the server 10 simultaneously provides the third userwith a message provided through the message chat room and audioinformation provided through the voice chat room. That is, the server 10may simultaneously provide the user with the message provided throughthe message chat room as visual information and the audio informationprovided through the voice chat room as auditory information. In somecases, in the third terminal 40, a window notifying that the audioinformation is being provided may be displayed to overlap a portion ofthe screen on which the message chat room is displayed.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 11 to 13 , a specific embodiment ofa method for operating a voice chat room subordinate to a message chatroom by the server 10 described above with reference to FIG. 10 will bedescribed.

FIG. 11 illustrates a screen on which a first terminal 20 or a secondterminal 30 requests a server 10 to issue voice chat room linkinformation.

Referring to FIG. 11 , the first terminal 20 or the second terminal 30may display an interface 1110 for requesting issuance of linkinformation issuance request and an interface 1120 for requestingsharing of link information. When an interaction is received from thefirst user or the second user with respect to the interface 1110 forrequesting issuance of link information, the first terminal 20 or thesecond terminal 30 may transmit information for requesting issuance ofvoice chat room link information. The server 10 receives a request forissuance of voice chat room link information and performs operationS1010. Then, the server 10 may provide the link information to the firstterminal 20 or the second terminal 30 in the form of a text. Thiscorresponds to the server 10 performing operation S1020.

Further, when the first user or the second user inputs an interactionwith respect to the interface 1120 for requesting sharing of linkinformation, the server 10 may share the link information in a postingspace designated by the first user or the second user.

FIG. 12 illustrates a screen on which a first terminal 20 posts voicechat room link information in a posting space.

Referring to FIG. 12 , it is illustrated that the first terminal 20posts link information 1220 in a different message chat room 1210, whichis a posting space, rather than a message chat room to which a voicechat room is subordinate. Thumbnail information 1230 for the linkinformation 1220 may be displayed in the message chat room 1210. Aparticipant of the different message chat room 1210 may request forparticipation in the voice chat room from the server 10 through theposted link information 1220.

FIG. 13 illustrates a screen on which the third terminal 40simultaneously receives a message provided through a message chat roomand audio information provided through a voice chat room from the server10.

Referring to FIG. 13 , when a third user participates in a message chatroom, to which a voice chat room is subordinate, through voice chat roomlink information, the third user may be simultaneously provided with amessage provided through the message chat room and audio informationprovided through the voice chat room. In this case, a third terminal 40may display a screen 1330, which is to notify that the audio informationis being provided, so as to overlap the screen 1310 displaying themessage chat room. Also, information indicating that the voice chat roomis being operated may be displayed in the form of a message 1320 in themessage chat room.

Although not shown in the drawings, there may be a case where the voicechat room is terminated when the third user requests participationthrough link information. In this case, the server 10 may provide thethird user with information indicating that the voice chat room isterminated.

Specifically, at a time when the server 10 receives a participationrequest from the third user, the voice chat room may be already in aterminated state.

In this case, when it is determined that the third user is participatingin the message chat room, the server 10 may control the third terminal40 to land at a page of the message chat room and may provide, at thispage, information indicating that the voice chat room is terminated.

On the other hand, when it is determined that the third user is notparticipating in the message chat room, the server 10 may control thethird terminal 40 to land at a page where information for participationin the message chat room is included, and may provide at this pageinformation indicating that the voice chat room is terminated.

As such, in a case where the voice chat room is already terminated at atime when the server 10 receives a participation request from the thirduser, the server 10 may receive a request from the third user so that anotification can be provided if another voice chat room subordinate tothe message chat room is created. Then, when another voice chat roomsubordinate to the message chat room is created, the server 10 mayprovide a notification to the third user.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 14 , a method of creating a voicechat room subordinate to a message chat room by a user terminal will bedescribed. For convenience of explanation, detailed descriptions of someredundant contents with those described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 13will be omitted.

In operation S1410, a user terminal displays a message chat roomincluding messages transmitted and received between participants. Here,a user of the user terminal may be the host or moderator of the messagechat room, and may have an authority to request creation of a voice chatroom subordinate to the message chat room.

In operation S1420, the user terminal displays an interface associatedwith a request for creation of a voice chat room subordinate to themessage chat room in a part of an area where the message chat room isdisplayed.

In operation S1430, the user terminal receives an interaction withrespect to the interface and transmits a request for creation of a voicechat room to the server 10.

A screen in which the above-described operations S1410, 1420, and 1430are implemented is in FIG. 3 .

In operation S1440, the user terminal displays a voice chat roomincluding information indicating that the user is a speaker.

In operation S1450, the user terminal displays information indicatingthat a counterpart terminal's user has just joined the voice chat room.A counterpart may participate as a listener in the voice chat room.Here, both the user and the counterpart are participants of the messagechat room to which the voice chat room is subordinate.

In operation S1460, the user terminal receives an audio signal to betransmitted to the counterpart terminal, and transmits the receivedaudio signal to the server 10.

A screen in which the above-described operations S1440, S1450, and S1460are implemented is shown in FIG. 4 .

Hereinafter, a method for a user terminal to participate in a voice chatroom subordinate to a message chat room will be described with referenceto FIG. 15 . For convenience of explanation, detailed descriptions ofsome redundant contents with those described with reference to FIGS. 2to 13 will be omitted.

In operation S1510, a user terminal displays a message chat roomincluding messages transmitted and received between participants.

In operation S1520, the user terminal displays information indicatingthat a voice chat room subordinate to a message chat room is beingoperated by a counterpart terminal's user in the message chat room, andan interface through which a request for participation in the voice chatroom can be transmitted.

In operation S1530, the user terminal receives an interaction withrespect to the interface, and transmits a request for participation inthe voice chat room to the server 10.

A screen in which the above-described operations S1510, S1520 and S1530are implemented is shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 .

In operation S1540, the user terminal displays the voice chat roomincluding information indicating that the user of the counterpartterminal is a speaker.

In operation S1550, the user terminal receives an audio signaltransmitted from the counterpart terminal through the server 10, andoutputs the transmitted audio signal.

A screen in which the above-described operations S1540 and S1550 areimplemented is shown in FIG. 4 .

Hereinafter, another method for a user terminal to participate in avoice chat room subordinate to a message chat room will be describedwith reference to FIG. 16 . For convenience of explanation, detaileddescriptions of some redundant contents with those described withreference to FIGS. 2 to 13 will be omitted.

In operation S1610, a user terminal displays voice chat room linkinformation posted in a posting space. This may be a situation in whichthe user terminal outputs a screen of an arbitrary message chat room oran internet bulletin board, and the voice chat room link information isincluded in the screen.

In operation S1620, the user terminal receives a user's interaction withrespect to the link information and transmits a request forparticipation in the voice chat room to the server 10.

An operation to be subsequently performed by the user terminal may varydepending on whether the user is participating in a message chat room towhich the voice chat room is subordinate.

If the user is participating in the message chat room to which the voicechat room is subordinate, the server 10 accepts the user's participationrequest and the user terminal performs operation S1630. In operationS1630, the user terminal displays the voice chat room includinginformation indicating that the user of the counterpart terminal is aspeaker.

A screen in which the above-described operation S1630 is implemented isshown in FIG. 4 .

If the user is not participating in the message chat room to which thevoice chat room is subordinate, the user terminal performs operationsS1640, S1650 and S1660.

In operation S1640, the user terminal displays a page for participatingin the message chat room.

In operation S1650, the user terminal transmits a request forparticipation in the message chat room to the server 10 through thepage. Unless there is a special reason for rejection, the server 10accepts the user's participation both in the message chat room and thevoice chat room.

In operation S1660, when the server 10 accepts the request forparticipation in the message chat room, the user terminal simultaneouslydisplays the message chat room and audio information provided throughthe voice chat room.

A screen in which the above-described operation S1660 is implemented isshown in FIG. 12 .

According to the method for operating a voice chat room subordinate to amessage chat room and the method for creating and participating in avoice chat room subordinate to a message chat room, there is anadvantage in that a voice chat room can be operated in a statesubordinate to a specific message chat room. The message chat room mayhave unique characteristics determined by a topic, a composition ofparticipants, and the like. When the voice chat room is subordinate tothe message chat room, there is an advantage that the voice chat roomcan also have its own characteristics in association withcharacteristics of the message chat room.

In addition, since the voice chat room is subordinate to the messagechat room, there is an advantage in that participants who have alreadyparticipated in the message chat room can be encouraged to participatein the voice chat room. In addition, since only the participants of themessage chat room are allowed to participate in the voice chat room, itis possible to set qualifications or requirements of the participants ofthe voice chat room.

The technical features disclosed in each embodiment of the presentdisclosure are not limited to a corresponding embodiment, and unlessincompatible with each other, the technical features disclosed in eachembodiment may be applied in combination to other embodiments.

Therefore, although each embodiment is described mainly about anindividual technical feature, the technical features of the embodimentsof the present disclosure may be applied in combination, unlessincompatible with each other.

The present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodimentsand accompanying drawings, and various modifications and changes can bemade by those skilled in the art. Accordingly, one of ordinary skillwould understand that the scope of the present disclosure is not to belimited by the explicitly described above embodiments but by thefollowing claims and equivalents thereof

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for operating a voice chat roomsubordinate to a message chat room, the method comprising: managing, bya server, messages transmitted and received through the message chatroom in which a first user and a second user participate; receiving, bythe server, a request for creation of the voice chat room subordinate tothe message chat room from the first user, wherein the voice chat roomis a chat room in which participants are able to transmit and receiveaudio information with each other, and in which only participants of themessage chat room are allowed to participate; creating, by the server,the voice chat room in response to the received request for creation ofthe voice chat room; providing, by the server, information that thevoice chat room is being operated to the second user through the messagechat room; providing, by the server, information that the voice chatroom is being operated to the second user through a message chat roomlist; receiving, by the server, a request for participation in the voicechat room from the second user; and managing, by the server, audioinformation transmitted and received through the voice chat room inwhich the first user and the second user participate.
 2. The method ofclaim 1, wherein in the providing of the information that the voice chatroom is being operated through the message chat room, the serverprovides an interface for participating in the voice chat room togetherwith the information that the voice chat room is being operated.
 3. Themethod of claim 1, wherein in the receiving of the request forparticipation in the voice chat room, the server receives thecorresponding request through the message chat room.
 4. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising: receiving, by the server, the request forparticipation in the voice chat room from a third user through voicechat room link information posted in a posting space.
 5. The method ofclaim 4, further comprising: receiving, by the server, a request forissuance of voice chat room link information from one of theparticipants of the voice chat room; and providing, by the server, thelink information to one of the participants of the voice chat room inresponse to the request for issuance.
 6. The method of claim 4, furthercomprising: in response to the request for participation in the voicechat room from the third user, accepting, by the server, participationof the third user in the voice chat room when the third user isparticipating in the message chat room.
 7. The method of claim 4,further comprising: in response to the request for participation in thevoice chat room from the third user, providing, by the server,information for participation in the message chat room to the third userwhen the third user is not participating in the message chat room. 8.The method of claim 7, further comprising: in response to receiving arequest for participation in the message chat room from the third user,accepting, by the server, participation of the third user both in themessage chat room and the voice chat room.
 9. The method of claim 4,further comprising: in response to the request for participation in thevoice chat room from the third user, providing, by the server, the thirduser with information indicating termination of the voice chat room whenthe voice chat room is terminated at a time of receiving the request forparticipation in the voice chat room from the third user.
 10. The methodof claim 9, further comprising: receiving, by the server, a request fornotification of creation of any other voice chat room subordinate to themessage chat room from the third user; and in response to the requestfor notification, providing, by the server, a notification to the thirduser when any other voice chat room subordinate to the message chat roomis created.
 11. The method of claim 1, further comprising: managing, bythe server, a participant with an authority to request the creation ofthe voice chat room from among the participants of the message chat roomdifferently from any other participant, wherein the first usercorresponds to the participant who has the authority to request thecreation of the voice chat room; and providing, by the server, aninterface through which the participant with the authority are able torequest the creation of the voice chat room subordinate to the messagechat room, wherein the requesting of the creation of the voice chat roomis made by the first user's interaction with respect to the interface.12. The method of claim 1, further comprising: managing a participantwith an authority to request creation of the voice chat room from amongthe participants in the message chat room differently from any otherparticipant, wherein the first user corresponds to the participant withthe authority to request creation of the voice chat room and the seconduser corresponds to the any other participant; receiving, by the server,information for requesting the creation of the voice chat roomsubordinate to the message chat room from the second user; andproviding, by the server, information for requesting the creation of thevoice chat room to the first user.
 13. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: providing, by the server, at least some of messages providedthrough the message chat room to the participants of the voice chat roomthrough the voice chat room.
 14. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: receiving, by the server, a request for provision of atleast a part of audio information provided through the voice chat roomfrom the second user who is not participating in the voice chat room;and in response to the request for provision of at least a part of audioinformation, providing, by the server, the at least a part of the audioinformation provided through the voice chat room to the second user. 15.The method of claim 14, wherein the at least a part of the audioinformation is audio information provided to the participants of thevoice chat room for a predetermined time based on a point in time whenthe server receives the request for provision of the at least a part ofthe audio information.
 16. A method for participating in a voice chatroom subordinate to a message chat room, the method comprising:displaying, by a user terminal, the message chat room containingmessages transmitted and received between the participants; displaying,by the user terminal, in a message chat room, information that the voicechat room subordinate to the message chat room is being operated by auser of a counterpart terminal, and an interface for transmitting arequest for participation in the voice chat room, wherein the voice chatroom is a chat room in which participants are able to transmit andreceive audio information with each other, and in which onlyparticipants of the message chat room are allowed to participate in thevoice chat room; displaying, by the user terminal, informationindicating that the voice chat room subordinate to the message chat roomis being operated, so that the information corresponds to the messagechat room in a message chat room list in which information on multiplemessage chat rooms is displayed; receiving, by the user terminal, aninteraction with respect to the interface, and transmitting, by the userterminal, a request for participation in the voice chat room to aserver; displaying, by the user terminal, a voice chat room includinginformation indicating that the user of the counterpart terminal is aspeaker, wherein the speaker is able to transmit audio information toother participants in the voice chat room; and receiving, by the userterminal, an audio signal transmitted from the counterpart terminalthrough the server, and outputting, by the user terminal, thetransmitted audio signal, wherein the user of the counterpart terminaland the user of the user terminal are participants in the message chatroom.
 17. A method for participating in a voice chat room subordinate toa message chat room, the method comprising: displaying, by a userterminal, voice chat room link information posted in a posting space,wherein the voice chat room is a chat room in which participants areable to transmit and receive audio information with each other;receiving, by the user terminal, an interaction with respect to the linkinformation and transmitting a request for participation in the voicechat room to a server; in response to the user of the user terminalbeing a participant of a message chat room to which the voice chat roomis subordinate, displaying, by the user terminal, a voice chat roomincluding information that a user of a counterpart terminal is aspeaker, wherein the speaker is able to transmit audio information toother participants in the voice chat room; and in response to the userof the user terminal being not a participant of the message chat room,displaying, by the user terminal, a page for participation in themessage chat room.
 18. The method of claim 17, further comprising:transmitting, by the user terminal, a request for participation in themessage chat room to the server through the page; and in response to theserver accepting the corresponding request, simultaneously displaying,by the user terminal, the message chat room and audio informationprovided through the voice chat room.
 19. The method of claim 18,wherein in the simultaneously displaying, the user terminal displays ascreen showing the audio information so as to overlap a screen showingthe message chat room.
 20. The method of claim 17, further comprising:in response to the voice chat room being terminated, displaying, by theuser terminal, information that the voice chat room is terminated.